I vividly remember the first time I saw Grave Digger. It was at their 30th anniversary show in Wacken in 2010. To my everlasting shame, I'd never even heard of them before that.

I had seen some friendly banter on my social media between my brother-in-law, Ballroom Otti, and Chris Boltendahl, so I figured since I was going to Wacken anyway, I'd check them out. Little did I know what a huge impact that show would have on me.

I loved their energy right from the start, and I was completely sold after a few songs. But nothing could have prepared me for 'Rebellion.'

When they brought out Van Canto and Hansi Kürsch to sing along, the crowd went nuts. And then they brought out the bagpipers. The whole audience was headbanging so hard, almost the whole audience probably missed huge parts of what was happening on stage. But only almost the whole audience. In the middle of that sea of mayhem, one sole metalhead had frozen stiff with his jaw dropped like Sebastian in the Little Mermaid. I can't recall a single occasion, neither before nor after, where I had an emotional reaction as strong as I had then to a song I was hearing for the first time in my life.

I've checked out all of Grave Digger's albums since then and eagerly awaited every new song in a hunt for another fix like the one I got that night. While I love their music, and listen to it frequently, that visceral reaction I had that night has sadly eluded me. All things considered, expecting an encore was always an unrealistic dream.

But yesterday, I came close. I was browsing through my promo inbox to find a new song or album to review. I'm a little behind due to a server crash we experienced, but browsing through the past few weeks, one of the mails I saw was the promo mail for Grave Digger's teaser for their upcoming album, a single called Hellfire Crusade.

I was out walking when I turned it on, and while I don't think my jaw dropped this time, I did freeze up again.

The theme, the art, the lyrics, the banshee guitars, and machine-gun pacing of the drums - this one is a real treat. I give it nine out of ten flaming skulls.

They're playing Wacken again this year. The 45th anniversary show! Sadly I'm still unsure if I'll be able to make it to Wacken this year, but if you in any way can, you really should catch that show. Maybe, if you're really lucky, you'll be the island of tranquility in the eye of the storm this time. Standing there with your jaw dropped to the floor while the savage seas of Wacken rage around you.

May 15th, 2025

Rattus Petrificus </div>

Last updated: May 30th, 2025

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